Posted!

Join the Conversation

Comments

Welcome to our new and improved comments, which are for subscribers only.
This is a test to see whether we can improve the experience for you.
You do not need a Facebook profile to participate.

You will need to register before adding a comment.
Typed comments will be lost if you are not logged in.

Please be polite.
It's OK to disagree with someone's ideas, but personal attacks, insults, threats, hate speech, advocating violence and other violations can result in a ban.
If you see comments in violation of our community guidelines, please report them.

PolitiKnox Insider: Collecting signatures to legalize marijuana

Steve Cooper is largely unaffiliated with any existing action group on the issue of legal marijuana other than the one he's created at tennesseemarijuana.org. He's working to collect signatures to get two referendums on the ballot before Knox County voters. One would allow recreational use of marijuana, and another would make medicinal marijuana OK.

But before that vote can occur, he must collect signatures — and a lot of them. He's shooting for 20,000, but really only needs about 16,100 voters in the county.

The formula is based on the number of people who voted in the prior gubernatorial election. Petitioning to get something on the ballot requires the signatures 15 percent of the total voters who voted locally in the governor's race.

A total of 107,275 voters cast votes in the gubernatorial election of 2014.

Cooper is aiming for 20,000 just in case some of the people who sign turn out to not be registered voters in Knox County.

He said he's reaching out to everybody he knows.

"I've networked with a lot of supporters, not only in Knox County, but out across the state," Cooper said.

School days

On Wednesday the Knox County Schools Board of Education will hold a meeting to discuss and vote on the proposed budget for 2016-17. This also means that budget season is upon us.

People who want to see the meeting can watch it broadcast live on KCS-TV Comcast Cable Channel 10, or streaming live at knoxschools.org/kcstv.

The school system is under an agreement with Knox County Commission that caps budget expansion to natural growth. The agreement also bought two new middle schools. One will be placed in the Hardin Valley area, and the other will go to the Gibbs community.

The agenda and other documents are available at knoxschools.org.

Election deadline

The withdrawal deadline is noon Wednesday for candidates to formally drop out of the upcoming Aug. 4 election.

Voters can begin requesting absentee ballots May 6. And July 5 is the last day to register to vote before the election, which will serve as a primary for state office and is the municipal general election for Knox County and Farragut offices.

No night out

The regular monthly night out meeting is cancelled for Knox County Commission's two at-large representatives, Ed Brantley and Bob Thomas.

Instead of hitting a local restaurant in the community the duo will attend the 9th Annual Halls Outdoor Classroom Celebration at 6 p.m. on April 19 at Halls High School.

The event is expected to finish with a pie eating contest featuring local celebrity contestants.

Read or Share this story: https://www.knoxnews.com/story/news/local/2016/04/12/politiknox-insider-collecting-signatures-to-legalize-marijuana/90894248/